NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Deutsche Bank announced its Commitment to Action at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting. The commitment was to the structuring of the Essential Capital Fund (the "Fund") which defines an innovative approach to providing early stage high risk money to support the impact investing sector.

The social finance/impact investment sector holds great promise in enabling private capital to be used towards the goal of addressing societal challenges. Its potential for growth, however, has been constrained by a scarcity of vehicles to efficiently provide investment capital. A critical missing element in the establishment of a robust impact investment marketplace is the uptake of the higher risk "first loss" capital that can leverage the participation of socially motivated, but cautious, capital providers.

Approximately $50 million in size, the Fund is a pioneering structure that will address this market failure by creating a credit enhancement facility that can be readily accessed by social enterprises and social impact funds around the world to help mitigate perceived risks of early stage enterprises. The Fund is being structured and managed by Deutsche Bank, with the intention of attracting mission driven investor interest from development banks, foundations and others who are committed to growing the scale and pace of the impact investment market. The Fund uses innovative tools to self-generate the first loss capital for the Essential Capital Fund itself.

"Deutsche Bank has used its social financing expertise, investment banking skills, business resources and worldwide relationships to create financial instruments and funds that benefit social enterprises. We are fully committed to realizing the Essential Capital Fund, which represents a pioneering effort in the impact investing field," said Seth Waugh, CEO of Deutsche Bank Americas.

About the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI)

Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) convenes global leaders to create and implement innovative solutions to the world's most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 150 heads of state, 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major philanthropists, and members of the media. To date CGI members have made more than 2,100 commitments, which are already improving the lives of nearly 400 million people in more than 180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments will be valued at $69.2 billion.

CGI's Annual Meeting is held each September in New York City. CGI also convenes CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative solutions to economic recovery in the United States, and CGI University (CGI U), which brings together undergraduate and graduate students to address pressing challenges in their community or around the world. For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.